Gibbons

There are six gibbon species native to Vietnam, including one which was only recently described in 2010. All of Vietnam’s gibbons are endangered. Gibbons are hunted and consumed as food in some remote areas, but more often they are sold and kept as pets or in private zoos, or used to attract and entertain visitors at cafes, restaurants and hotels.

Tipped off about an impending inspection, the owner of a restaurant in Hanoi removed this northern white-cheeked gibbon (Hylobates concolor leucogennys) less than an hour before police arrived.

Another gibbon being kept at a resort in Binh Thuan province disappeared shortly after a foreign tourist reported it to the authorities.Photo by JM

One of three gibbons being kept at a popular restaurant on Highway 1 in Dong Nai province. The owner has since tentatively agreed to transfer the animals to a rescue center.